Communication Quote by Richard Sibbes
““This bruising is required before conversion that so the Spirit may make way for himself into the heart by levelling all proud, high thoughts, and that we may understand ourselves to be what indeed we are by nature. We love to wander from ourselves and to be strangers at home, till God bruises us by one cross or other, and then we 'begin to think', and come home to ourselves with the prodigal (Luke 15:17). It is a very hard thing to bring a dull and an evasive heart to cry with feeling for mercy. Our hearts, like criminals, until they be beaten from all evasions, never cry for the mercy of the judge.””
About This Quote
Source Sermon: The Christian Life, 1620
Spiritual growth often requires painful trials that humble pride, allowing deeper self‑knowledge and divine mercy.
In simple terms: Hardship humbles us, leading to true self‑understanding and grace.
Key Takeaway
Accept trials as paths to spiritual insight.
Themes
faith
humility
transformation
Mood
contemplative
somber
Type
theological
philosophical
When to use this quote
- personal crisis
- spiritual counseling
- reflective prayer
Key Concepts
penitence
divine grace
Questions to Reflect On
- What inner bruises have led to insight?
- How can we transform suffering into mercy?
A Different Perspective
Pain can be destructive if not framed as growth.
![“The tenets of [the Christian life] seem paradoxes to carnal men; as first, that a Christian is the only freeman, and other men are slaves; that he is the only rich man, though never so poor in the world; that he is the only beautiful man, though outwardly never so deformed; that he is the only…” quote by Richard Sibbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/74a/richard-sibbes-7950_beautiful_the-tenets-of-the-christian-life-seem-pa_150495.jpg)
